The Perks of Being a Patron!

If you have wanted to get access to Emma exclusive songs, lives, and more, you should look at my Patreon page!

I always release my new releases at least a week ahead on my Patreon page and I also post up songs weekly. The songs can be anything from instrumental parts of released songs to covers to originals. I also release sheet music, printable lyric art, and monthly live shows for patrons only. You can follow along with the process every time I release a new album and be updated as I get ready to release!

It’s so helpful to me as well to have supporters on my Patreon. Spotify pays about .003 cents per stream so getting close to a million plays in 2021 meant I earned around $2000 for the entire year. Patreon gives me the ability to create music as a career.

If this sounds good to you, check out my page here!

First Impressions Out Everywhere November 13, 2020

It is so exciting to announce that my newest album, First Impressions, is out all over the place- from Apple Music to Spotify to Bandcamp! This album was themed on what makes an ideal relationship as told through the perspectives of characters of Jane Austen’s beloved Pride and Prejudice.

Although the music is meant for all listeners- regardless if they’ve read the book or not- Austenites will enjoy the nods to Lizzie Bennet, Darcy, and characters like Charlotte and Lydia.

Much thanks is due to my patrons for constantly supporting me over the years on Patreon. It means the world to me.

I Love a Piano (Keyboard)

I love acoustic pianos- my favorite type is upright spinets. Spinets, in my opinion, have the warmest, sweetest tones to them.

However, right now I’m living in a second floor apartment so having an upright piano seems like it might make enemies of my neighbors (particularly the downstairs one) so i’ve been using my old Yamaha P-88 keyboard I’ve had for 20 (!) years. I’ve taken my keyboard all around the US, from downtown L.A. to Downtown Disney. It’s also been invaluable to me as a recording artist since I use it to record most of my instruments in my recordings via midi.

The thing about my keyboard is that it is, for all intents and purposes, a real piano. it has the three things that I consider essential for learning and playing piano:

  1. 88 keys. You can get away with fewer at the very very beginning of learning piano, but you will come up to needing more keys much sooner than you may imagine.

  2. Touch sensitivity. You want the piano to respond to you when you play a key with more force or less force. I have played keyboards without that and it’s nearly impossible to play with any sort of expression. It also undercuts one of the main rules of piano- play the accompaniment at a lower volume than the melody.

  3. Weighted keys. This is something that is especially important if you ever plan on transitioning to a real piano. Since real pianos have hammers that hit strings, the lower toned notes have bigger hammers than the higher toned notes so it takes more strength to play a note further down the piano. That ends up affecting how you play. It’s also so much easier to play fast when there is a little resistance when you press the keys.

Here are a few keyboards that fit the bill on Amazon:

Yamaha -

They don’t make my model of piano anymore, alas, as it was purchased so long ago. But this is much less expensive than my keyboard and it has speakers (although, I still recommend getting monitors to get a more satisfying sound).

Alesis

This piano doesn’t have the name recognition of the others but is a good starting point with all the necessary elements for learning piano. A lot of lifelong musicians rate it highly in touch and sound.

Casio-

This is what I knew as digital pianos as a kid. This particular model is really nice. I don’t own it but I considered buying this exact model when I was thinking of getting a second keyboard for playing out.

M-Audio

I have a ton of M-Audio gear in my recording studio. This keyboard is super heavy so it might not be the best choice if you’re planning to gig out a lot. However, many professionals swear that this is the absolute best-feeling piano at the under-$1000 range.

Korg

Last but not least is Korg. Korg is a company that makes keyboards used onstage by bands and musicians everywhere. This is a simple, no-frills keyboard with a great sound and a good touch.

* These links are affiliate links so if you do purchase through these links, I will receive a percentage of your sales.

Sister Moon by Sting (a song I love)

Have you ever bought an old book in a used bookstore, flipped through it when you got home and found a little folded note tucked in a page in old-time penmanship? This little unknown song feels like that note.

I got the Nothing Like the Sun album by Sting when I was in high school and I must have listened to it about one-hundred million times. Although there are more famous tracks on the album (Be Still My Beating Heart, Englishman in New York, the beautiful Fragile), this song is absolutely perfect, absolutely exquisite in my mind. I love the Shakespeare references, Branford Marsalis’ lonely saxophone, the sloping, film noir bass line, the quasi-lullaby lyrics. I did a cover for my patrons on Patreon last year that i’m posting up here for you to hear.

Are there any songs that feel like a special, private discovery? You sort of wish they were more popular so more people could hear them but also a little (selfishly) glad that it’s like they belong to just you?

Story Behind the Song - That's What Hopes Are For

I wrote this song for my The Stuff of Fairy Tales album years ago but I still remember how the song was inspired! I was watching a Monk* episode and in it, Natalie tells Monk, “I’m worried you’re getting your hopes up.” And he replies, “Well, that’s what hopes are for!” And it stuck in my head how true it was!

The ‘castles in the air’ line is from my favorite quote ever by Thoreau: “If you have built castles in the air, your work need not be lost; that is where they should be. Now put the foundations under them.” And then with all that, it seemed appropriate to simply fill in other cautionary metaphors that would be used to temper unbridled optimism.

The whole album is based on fairy tales and this song I used for the story of Jack and the Beanstalk because his optimism seems to cause all sorts of problems for him and his mother at the start but ends up being their saving grace. I recorded it on my Instagram page back on Easter if you want to watch!

Here are the lyrics and i’ve included a link to the sheet music if you want to play it yourself!

I appreciate your concern

When you say I’ve got a lot to learn

You say, one day, the piper will have to get paid 

And


All good things have got to end

And I have been on a good thing bend

You say, you know, I’ve got to keep my expectations low

But

Chorus:

I’ve got my head in the clouds

There I’m safe from the madding crowds

My hopes are high, and more

Cause that’s what hopes are for

I build castles in the air

And I plan to live up there

Call me a fool, but I’m sure

That that’s what hopes are for

And

I count my chickens while they’re still eggs

It’s easier than when they’ve got legs

I don’t hold my horses

I give them free reign of courses

And


I don’t wait for that show to fall

I don’t even wait at all

First look, then leap

I’d sell my cow for some magic beans

Cause

Chorus:

I’ve got my head in the clouds

There I’m safe from the madding crowds

My hopes are high, and more

Cause that’s what hopes are for

I build castles in the air

And I plan to live up there

Call me a fool, but I’m sure

That that’s what hopes are for

And

I’ve got my head in the clouds

There I’m safe from the madding crowds

My hopes are high, and more

Cause that’s what hopes are for

I build castles in the air

And I plan to live up there

Call me a fool, but I’m sure

That that’s what hopes are

That that’s what hopes are

That that’s what hopes are for

Music for Reading

Sometimes when i’m reading, I feel like outside sounds can be a distraction and i’d prefer silence. But then there are books that just seem to call for a perfect soundtrack. If you are reading a book where some Yann Tiersen or Schubert could enhance the setting, here is a playlist for you to enjoy! If you have any suggestions of additions, let me know!

Books that inspire magical imaginings...

In honor of World Book Day yesterday, I thought of some books that inspire me to look at the world in a fresh way. I love children’s literature and have read far more children’s lit than any other genre (I have worked in both bookstores and libraries and it’s still the section where I go to pick out new reads!) but anyone who has read about Alice in Wonderland, Harry Potter, or the Chronicles of Narnia knows the enchantment of a good kids’ book!

So here are some of my favorite inspiring reads:

Where the Mountain Meets the Moon- this book is a delightful and wise tale told through Chinese folklore, written and illustrated by Grace Lin. As an avid fairy tale reader, I loved the format of stories within a story and the message from the book couldn’t be lovelier.

Diary of a Fairy Godmother- okay, my absolute dream is that one day someone from Netflix or Apple TV or Disney +, etc. is going to contact me to tell me they are making a t.v. adaptation of this quirky, sweet and perfectly odd book by Esme Raji Codell and they want me to do the music for it. So, if you know anyone in power in those places, I will be forever grateful if you make that happen! Even if you don’t, you should absolutely read this one for yourself.

Heartseeker by Miranda Beatty was my latest enchanting fantasy. I was absolutely riveted by the story of a girl who cannot lie and can see when others do. Not only was the world that it was told in very concrete and believable, it made me reconsider basic beliefs about honesty and family. I loved it.

What are some of the books that you’ve recently read that have inspired magical imaginings for you?

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